The present invention relates to fence post driving and extraction apparatus and, in particular, to a slide hammer type assembly including post grasping means.
Individuals concerned with stringing wire fencing must necessarily set the posts into the ground, before stringing and stretching the fencing material between the posts.
Depending upon the type of fencing material, a variety of posts may be used to support the fencing. Such posts may comprise wooden structures or formed metal structures and of which a post exhibiting a T-cross sectional shape has become particularly popular.
A problem encountered in driving such T-posts, however, is that the posts exhibit a tendency of rotating during the initial post driving strokes which can cause misalignment of the post relative to the intended fence line, thus necessitating removal and re-setting. A further problem is that once driven, these and other posts are removable only through brute force by extracting the posts either with special or heavy equipment, a jacking assembly or manually, by grasping the post and exerting an upward pulling force. Any device which minimizes the labor necessary to perform this task therefore clearly presents desirable advantages to the user.